[center][h1]-Collab Between Pezz570, Fetzen and HokumPocus-

[color=dde0c7]Octavio[/color]
[color=ff9900]Týfurkh[/color]
[color=00aeef]Chres[/color]
[color=ed1c24]Akai[/color]
[color=a2d39c]Sil[/color]
[color=#ffff66]Lynx[/color][/h1][/center]

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Týfurkh did not spent any significant amount of time to inspect the room Chres had pointed out. It was small, damp, dark, ugly and last but not least had a sturdy door with a lock on it. Not spending much effort on ensuring a soft landing for his cargo, the giant dumped Jewl into the chamber and made her disappear out of everyone’s view quickly.

Not much later however the whole building sounded as if it was either under fire from big catapults or had just become the dwelling place for at least one big dragon, probably more. While he was certain the latter did not exist, the catapults were a scenario he could not rule out entirely. A case of friendly fire from the soldiers outside who could not know ? Before being able to think further he heard Chres’ callout and not a moment too soon. Protecting his face with his hands, Týfurkh fled for the wall whom he supposed was the point of greatest stability.

Both the catapults and the dragon would have been preferable to the one person who ultimately made her appearance: Tayla! And there was the coin trick again, just as if they were still standing on that damn tower. Couldn’t this sweet-toothed woman just leave them alone with their personal affairs ? What the hell was it she and Karina had with one another ?

Anyway. Karina was on their side and since Tayla had not hesitated to attack Týfurkh at the first opportunity either, there was no reason to stay out of this at all. And speaking of sweet-toothed… was Tayla’s obvious desire to consume candy cotton even in a combat situation not a little too absurd for a mere eating habit ? Maybe taking that stuff away from her would have some impact…

Týfurkh reached for a large piece of broken stone that had come down from the ceiling. He aimed for Tayla’s head not really expecting to score a hit, but every distraction would be good right now.

Tayla quickly warped the floor beneath the group, launching both Tayla and Karina into the forth story of the gate house before Týfurkh’s attack had a chance to hit.

[color=00aeef]”The hell?!”[/color] Chres said in-between coughs. [color=00aeef]”Who in the senses was that?”[/color] Not having met Tayla before, Chres was ignorant of Karina’s previous two encounters with the woman.

[color=a2d39c]”Silly silly, Chres. Everybody knows that was Icie-rina’s love interest. They were dancing in the tower during that day with all the falling puddles.”[/color]

[color=00aeef]”Her… love interest.”[/color] Chres said skeptically.

[color=a2d39c]”Yup yup yup! Aren’t they cute together?”[/color] Sil asked before leaning in real close. [color=a2d39c]”Just between you and me though,”[/color] she whispered while nudging her head in Týfurkh’s direction. [color=a2d39c]”I think it's more of a love triangle.”[/color]

Chres raised an eyebrow. Okay, now he was sure Sil didn’t have a clue.


[color=00aeef]”Whatever the case, Karina can take care of herself. In the meantime, I think we should head for the roof and open the portcullis there. Akai, if you would rather go after Karina instead. I wouldn’t blame you.”[/color]

Everything had happened so fast that Akai wasn't even able to process it, only watching, confused as the roof suddenly crashed down on them, with a stranger suddenly appearing and taking Karina with them somewhere.

[color=ed1c24]"Karina? What happened?"[/color] Akai asked, coughing as the dust began slowly settling down. Luckily, no one from their group was caught by the debris or seemed to be hurt, with only Karina having disappeared together with the strange figure.

When Sil began talking, replying to Chres whom seemed to be just as confused as Akai was, she couldn't help but sigh, putting her hand in her face in disbelief.

[color=ed1c24]"Umm... You probably shouldn't let Karina hear that, Sil..."[/color] she said shaking her head.

[color=ed1c24]"Knowing her, the only dance she knows is the one including swords."[/color] she said. While she did gave a little chuckle at what Sil had said, Akai was still a bit worried. She trusted Akai and knew that her confidence wasn't for nothing but still, even if she was strong, even a genius would be powerless against an enemy with numeric superiority.

[color=ed1c24]"I... It's not like I'm worried about her or anything... You guys can probably take care of yourselves. I know she is strong and can take care of herself but she is still alone. There are also those weird sightless with strange powers and the crazy cultists..."[/color] Akai said, trying to make up an excuse to go to where Karina was without admitting she was worried.

[color=ed1c24]"Anyways! If something bad happens, just scream! I will definitely do the same if things get bad there too!"[/color] Akai said, before dashing away to where Karina had gone.

Chres nodded. Now that the townspeople had raided the walls, he suspected that they could make it to the winch for the outer portcullis with relative ease. [color=00aeef]”We’re almost there guys. Chres said, looking to the stairs. The only thing that stands between us and the winch is five flights of stairs… Octavio, Týfurkh, Lynx-”[/color]

[color=a2d39c]”-Sil”[/color] Sil piped in, not wanted to be left out,

Chres gave a rare smile. [color=00aeef]”And yes, of course, Sil… Are you all with me?”[/color]

[color=ff9900]”You know I don’t like buildings all twisting and warping around me so they can make my friends disappear, but I guess in order to end all this we will not have any other choice anyway.”[/color] was Týfurkh’s reply towards Chres. The disappointment in his voice was quite hard to overhear, as much as he believed in Karina’s competence, too. He hardly knew Akai, but if she rushed to help her it probably was a good thing.

There was one other, tiny, not to be neglected issue though… and Týfurkh started pointing at it -- Sil -- with his index finger. [color=ff9900]”I’ve heard rumors that some people of my nation are working on a method on how to bend, twist and warp not only buildings, but space itself. Maybe I should have a talk with them so they can teach me how to catch you without running at you!”[/color]

Sil yelped and quickly zipped behind the cover of Chres’ back. 

[color=a2d39c]”Scary...”[/color] She said as she peeked her head above Chres’ shoulder.

Týfurkh grinned, perfectly knowing that his statement was nothing but creative bullshit. However one thing was right about it: He indeed would have liked to get a hold on Sil, just to give her that cute little slap in her adorable face that she so desperately deserved!

[color=ff9900]”Shall I go first ?”[/color] he now asked in Chres’ direction, gesturing towards the staircase.

Chres smiled and gave Týfurkh a quick nod. 

[color=00aeef]”Go right on ahead.”[/color] Chres said. [color=00aeef]”Just give a shout if you need me to charge ahead at any attackers.”[/color]

Chres then looked to Octavio and raised an eyebrow. Apparently Octavio had somehow found a new pair of spectacles during the fight. When did he have the time to find that? 

A sudden bout of banging, from the room where Týfurkh locked Jewl in, answered that question. 

“HEY! Let me out of here!” Jewl shouted from her newly found prison.

Chres ignored her cries. [color=00aeef]”Got any useful tricks that you can do with those?”[/color] Chres asked, an amused smile crossing his lips.

Octavio wore the spectacles with a quiet uncertainty that read across his face, less as if they were an accessory and more as if they were a bizarre tool. Not that the latter was incorrect either. [color=dde0c7]“Hmm…”[/color] he hummed.

[color=dde0c7]“Hey! Any convenient way to activate this instrument?!”[/color] He cupped a hand around his mouth and shouted at Jewl. He only shrugged at the ensuing silence.

[color=dde0c7]“A shame her surprise incarceration got to her like that. If only we had more time, I’d be able to put Lynx’s interrogation skills up to the test.”[/color]

The familiar craned his neck from where he’d been keeping watch. [color=#ffff66]“No.”[/color]

Though the phantasmagoria of war made it near impossible to recall events beyond flashes of emotions and imagery, Octavio had a few brief memories in which Jewl was keeping close to light sources during their battle. He saw violence as a spectacle, but that made it all the more easier to not only take part but remember. If the constructs were made of light then all Octavio would have to do is…

A guard materialized in front of him at a speed that made him take a step back. He’d known what was going to happen, but it still shocked him that [i]he[/i] was the one in charge. [color=dde0c7]“Incredible. It’s a sort of conduit for my abilities… one that can also amplify them.”[/color] His destitute upbringing had led him to harbor a distaste towards people who relied on technology over raw talent. Jewl, in his mind, was that sort of person. The type that didn’t last long in the chaos of war that couldn’t be taught through private lessons or textbooks. He shook his head until his perpetual smirk faded and followed the others, Lynx following suit. 

Chres raised his brow slightly concerned. From his perspective, it looked like Octavio was playing with a crossbow that he didn’t even know was loaded. At the very least though, the man knew where the trigger was.

[color=00aeef]”Alright, lets go then.”[/color] 

Chres and the rest made their way up the stairs facing off against the little resistance they encountered. After several painful minutes they at last made it to the fourth story of the northern side to the gate house.

The floor here was covered in ice. Karina’s work no doubt. Sure enough, in the next room, where the inner winch resided. Chres could make out Karina. Her blade pointed at that other lady’s through.

[b][color=c4df9b]”A pep talk?”[/color][/b] The woman said. [b][color=c4df9b]”You held your blade just give me a damn pep talk?!”[/color][/b] 

Chres smiled. Karina was fine, and better yet, it appeared that she already had one of the winches under control.

[color=00aeef]”This way!”[/color] Chres said. He waved the others towards the roof. [color=00aeef]”It appears Karina’s already got this floor covered!”[/color]

Taking care to not slip on the ice, Chres and the climbed the last flight of stairs. There two soldiers guarded the door leading to rooftop access. Chres and the rest dispatched of the two soldiers and opened the door...

Chres looked upon the roof of the gatehouse. The winch lay there with five dead soldiers laying nearby. Hesitating, he looked to the others feeling concerned. The guards were already dead, but who had gotten to them?

Oh great! So Octavio had picked up some kind of fancy, magic thingy he apparently had no real clue how to use yet. That could only mean that it was as much a potential danger as it was a potential benefit, but still that was not Týfurkh’s most immediate concern at all.

Had the others even the slightest idea of how little friction the combination of steel boots on ice provided ? The giant did not even try to walk his way towards the next flight of stairs, but instead picked up some momentum on the little portion of the room’s floor that was not covered in ice, then tightened the muscles in his legs to lock them into place. He just slid his way towards the stairs, rapidly having to switch back to walking and climbing them at the end so not to stumble.

The sight on the roof was strange to say the least. As much as he had reason to believe that both Karina’s abilities and those of her opponent were powerful, just discounting five dead guards as collateral damage that somehow spread through an intact roof would be convenient, but foolish. Something else had killed them, that was for sure. But… what ?

Týfurkh looked around to the left, right and behind him in order to see if any other person was around except them. Then he moved forward towards the second winch as there was no point in just standing around and wondering. They’d have to get that thing moving anyway.

Dark tendrils shot from the rooftop above the door from which Týfurkh exited. Sightless!

[color=00aeef]”Behind!”[/color] Chres shouted, a Compressed ball of Tempraision already at the ready.

Chres launched the ball towards the tendrils, but the tendrils retracted as if expecting Chres’s attack. Chres sad ball of compressed energy flew past the tendrils and instead landed harmlessly in the distance, exploding on impact. Meanwhile the tendrils had changed directions and where now launching towards Chres. 

Quickly Chres threw up a wall, but the action proved fruitless. The tendrils simply redirected their advance yet again. Maneuvering around the wall wrapping around Chres’s torso. The next thing he knew Chres found himself getting lifted off the ground and tossed away off the side of the gate house. 

[color=a2d39c]”Chres!”[/color] Sil cried out. Without a moment’s hesitation. She zipped after him. 

And, just like that, Chres was cut out of the equation.

Octavio cursed under his breath. As if trekking through ice hadn’t been irritating enough, their group had now encountered another esoteric magician. One that had tossed Chres aside in mere moments, no less. Under normal circumstances, having dispelled his illusions earlier in order to traverse the ice quicker would have damned him. He now had a new gadget to aid him, however. 

[hr]

[b]“Bothersome. Bothersome. Bothersome. Bothersome.”[/b] The newly formed Sightless De’laire muttered under her breath. [b]“Enemies on the wall. Enemies at the gate. Soldiers? Useless. Died too easily. Need to tell Sightless Nieffar... recruit better help...”[/b]

Sightless De’laire ignored the screams of the man she just tossed off the building. Or had she tossed that one off? Maybe he simply jumped. Seemed silly to jump off a wall, but De’laire had seen crazier. Like herself for example. 

[b]“Bothersome. Bothersome. Bothersome. Bothersome!”[/b] Sightless De’laire said, her voice getting progressively louder. 

De’laire used to be Crazed. But becoming Sightless had fixed that… right? Right??? Yes… yes, of course it had! She had traded in her Crazed magic for new magic. She couldn’t be Crazed anymore… But that man though… He must be Crazed. Jumping off a building? Dangerous that is!

Using her right hand, De’laire wiped away the strange orange goop that collected around her recently scratched out eyes. De’laire was still transitioning into full Sightless. As such, the wounds on her scratched out eyes were still fresh. Her blood and body had begun to change quickly but had not fully changed into a proper Sightless pigment. And her skin, while having already hardened, it had yet to form that bark-like texture other Sightless had.

De’laire launched another set of tendrils at the giant heading for the winch. [b]“You aren’t supposed to be here!”[/b] De’laire yelled at the man. 

Why did everyone need to talk instead of just doing things? As much as Týfurkh had not expected a sightless or almost-sightless to be here on top of the roof, as much did the latter spoil her advantage by spending moments on talking. As the tendrils were headed on their way, Týfurkh’s hand detached from the bolt on his crossbow and the other pulled the trigger.

The bolt was not aimed for the sightless herself though. Instead of gambling on punching through her bark-like skin and achieving a lethal blow, the giant had opted for the safe route of blasting a hole in the roof. Roof tiles went flying and wood splintered with explosive force as the acoustic energy stored in the bolt was released, sending sort of a shockwave through the gatehouse. Týfurkh didn’t hesitate to jump into the new hole the sightless had disappeared through, hoping that the floor beneath would be sturdy enough to stop his fall. The primary intention behind the move was, of course, to land on the sightless and to just break every bone in her ugly new self. He had his fist at the ready!

De’laire ignored the bolt. She could tell from the Insight that the bolt wouldn’t hit her - the bolt struck the roof tiles - although it did seem like the bolt would explode - the bolt exploded -

[b][i]Rude...[/i] [/b]De’laire thought as her footing collapsed beneath her… And was this man about to hit her? [b][i]Very, very rude...[/i][/b]

De’laire’s feet extruded. Elongating until they made contact with a wall. Pushing against the wall, her main body slid backwards and well out of the way of the giant and his fist. 

She then retracted her legs back to their normal length while launching a new set of tendrils intended to wrap around the large man’s neck and strangle him... but then she noticed the other person who was not supposed to be here. A scrawny man, with a pricy set of clothes. 

De’laire redirected her tendrils towards this new man. [b]“Bothersome! Bothersome! Bothersome! BOTHERSOME!” [/b]De’laire screamed. [b]“WHY ARE YOU PEOPLE HERE?!”[/b]

Her tendrils shot towards the scrawny man’s legs.

Fueled by panic and instinct, Octavio summoned a guard illusion to take the hit for him at a speed he’d been never able to reach through his more traditional methods. With a pang of discomfort he became aware of the binoculars’ true consequences. They were far faster at summoning illusions, yes, but that didn’t mean they didn’t require any less light. The strain hit him faster and harder, and the instantaneous void of light he could sense within the device provoked a particular sense of despair within him. Would the tendrils even take the illusion in as a sacrifice? There was only one way to find out. 

He gritted his teeth. Týfurkh’s plan was good, but they needed to keep her pinned down somehow. Perhaps if her tendrils made it impossible to do so, Octavio could at least distract her like this. He realized Lynx had come to the same conclusion, judging by his careful leaps near him. Those movements were all it took to inform Octavio he was just as unsure how to proceed. 

De’laire’s tendrils halted midair. 

[b]“What!?”[/b] De’laire shouted in surprise. 

Clambering to her feet, she cocked her head. If she extended her tendrils any further, then the Insight suggested they would crash into something solid. And yet, being unable to see illusions, nothing appeared to be there.

Confusion. Not the best outcome, but Octavio’s circumstances could have easily gotten worse. It was what fueled the element of surprise, what allowed the weak to trample the strong. Týfurkh and him would have to use every fraction of time this had granted them to their advantage. 

Týfurkh performed a quite solid act of lithobraking onto the floor beneath, causing a noticeable rumble to travel well beyond the boundaries of the room. Even through the massive gauntlet and the padding beneath it his fist still hurt significantly, but even more so did the fact that he obviously had missed the target. Or rather… it had managed to evade.

On the plus side however she was on the same, lower level as he was however, which meant she was much further away from the gate apparatus they were all here for and maybe someone else could start using it while the sightless found herself distracted. The giant thought what to do next, seeing that Octavio did a damn good job but still could use some help probably.

The impact had caused some stone beneath Týfurkh’s feet and fist to crumble so there was some small, loose debris lying around. Currently having run out of bolts at the ready he realized that this would be just as good for a magically enhanced projectile that didn’t entirely rely on its own speed to cause damage. It was a costly operation, but Týfurkh charged one of the broken off pieces of stone with acoustic vibration, then just tossed it into De’laire’s direction. She couldn’t just evade each and every shrapnel this would cause while he didn’t need to for he had a lot of armor on him. 

Keeping her busy, that was the plan in his mind. Now hopefully one of the others would realize what he was up to and get to work on the portcullis!


[b]“Oh! Silly me! It’s an illusion isn’t i-”[/b] De’laire exclaimed happily as Týfurkh’s bit of rubble hit her in her side.

The rubble exploded into a cloud of dust. Octavio scrambled for cover and found none, albeit having at the very least put distance between himself and De’laire. 

[b]“I HADN’T FINISHED TALKING YET!”[/b] Screamed a distressed De’laire from the cloud of rubble. Her tendrils quickly retracted into the cloud of dust as she shot a second pair of tendrils that wrapped around a nearby shelving unit.

[b]“You!”[/b] De’laire growled at Týfurkh, the cloud of rubble clearing. [b]“Don’t you know it’s rude to interrupt when someone is speaking?!”[/b]

A portion of De’laire’s gown had been shredded by the explosion. Her body, however, remain mostly intact other than several large cracks. The same orange goop that gathered around De’laires eyes began to seep through the cracks.

De’laire retracted the tendrils wrapped around the shelving, causing it to reel in the shelving unit towards her despite the weight. The unit loudly dragged across the stone flooring as she positioned it between her and Týfurkh.

[b]“NOBODY GETS IT! NOBODY UNDERSTANDS! Am I the only one with proper manners here?! They call me Crazed, but I’m not Crazed! NO! Not me! Not now that I’ve become Sightless! Yes! I gave that magic up! I’m sane now! It’s everybody else who’s Crazed!”[/b]

As she spoke, she drew the tendrils upwards lifting the shelving slightly off the ground. Then, she extended her tendrils, sending the shelving towards Týfurkh at a surprising speed.

At first Týfurkh had honestly thought that De’laire would merely use the shelving unit as some sort of a barrier against more projectiles coming from his side. It would have made some sense, but who was he to expect any sensible, yet non-violent action from a sightless ?

[color=ff9900]“Thank you! I really appreciate the offer but honestly I don’t think I need more edu..”[/color] At that point the shelving unit started flying and even more unfortunately so its trajectory led right towards him. The giant tried to jump aside, but the large wooden contraption still hit him partially. Wood shattered as it impacted upon thick steel and Týfurkh was sent onto the stone floor.

When exactly had been the last time one of those and their followers had made his nose bleed a lot ? As he could already taste the iron when the blood leaked into his mouth, his memory kicked in: near the top of the now ruined belltower, right! Why had he even started to talk back to De’laire ? Maybe because it was much less of an absurd idea than he himself had thought at the very first moment: If she was so talkative it could only help to distract her further by throwing back some verbal nonsense at her.

Týfurkh’s view dashed along the walls of the room. He needed to know what other items happened to stand around here, just in case anything was more dangerous than a piece of furniture…

Octavio struggled to think of his next course of action, unable to shake off the way she’d treated his illusion. Her tentacles had halted, wary of it, yet she had most definitely been put off by something. She hadn’t been able to register the illusion in her mind properly. He resisted the urge to curse. Trepidation like that wouldn’t happen twice, and now Týfurkh had taken a heavy blow. 

He had a plan, of course. He just knew it would be risky. Summoning a second guard illusion in an instant, he cupped a hand around his mouth. [color=dde0c7]“Throwing furniture that doesn’t even belong to you around, how rude!”[/color]

Any direct method of attack from Octavio would have been disastrous, and any throwing knives would have simply been swatted by tentacles. He grit his teeth and sent the two guards to swarm her. But they required a distraction.

[color=dde0c7]“Becoming sightless doesn’t make you ladylike, that much is clear!”[/color] he shouted. 

She then turned her sightless gaze towards Octavio.

[b]“This one is just like everybody else. He doesn’t listen! I didn’t become Sightless to become more ladylike. I became Sightless to-”[/b]

De’laire paused, and then tilted her head to the side in thought. 

[b]“Oh wait… that was an insult, wasn’t it?” [/b]

De’laire sighed as she wrapped her tendrils around several particularly splintered broken planks of wood that lay scattered around Týfurkh.

[b]“You know, with the city under attack there are so many other places that I should be right now.”[/b]

The fingers on De’laire’s free hand began to elongate as well and wrapped around one of the splintered planks that she had gathered with her other set of tendrils.

[b]“So, if you don’t mind, would you please remain still?”[/b]

One by one, De’laire launched the splintered planks at Octavio like javelins.

[color=dde0c7]“Augh!”[/color] shouted Octavio, wood and debris descending on him in a violent frenzy. Despite her slipping grasp on reality, the woman seemed to have clung on to at least a shred of it, as her attacks carried a sense of momentum to them. In one moment a plank would crash near his legs, then another several palms from his skull. The planks alternated in intensity, speed, location, everything to keep Octavio in a constant dance against death. 


[b]“Such a terrible listener.” De’aire muttered with annoyance. “Or maybe he just doesn’t know how to stay still...”[/b]

The flat side of a particularly large plank struck him across the shoulder. Rather than resist it he took the hit and transitioned into a roll that kept him from having his feet planted for more than a moment. Counterattacking would be impossible for him, he was realizing. A splintered fragment of a plank cut through his arm during his struggle to evade a larger one that was headed towards his lungs. Within the grimace that seeped across his face was satisfaction. It wasn’t just him in this battle.

Both of the guard illusions that had been bizarrely untargeted by the woman continued their charge. Upon Octavio’s wordless commanding they drew their swords and lunged, aiming for the orange in between the cracks of her body. 

De’laire annoyance gradually began to grow. 

[b]“You’re doing it all wrong! If you would just stop moving, we would be done here much sooner!”[/b] The Sightless shouted.

The dull pain at her sides suddenly spiked as something invisible cut through the cracks in her skin. The pain wasn’t sharp. No, Sightless De’laire had noticed that intensity of pain seemed to have lessened as the transition progressed. Even her scratched out eyes, which just last night had been excruciatingly painful, had become just a dull thud. 

This pain, however, was more immediate, as her ability to heal was not quite as quick as a normal Sightless just yet.

[i]Right![/i] De’laire thought. [i]The illusions.[/i] 

She swatted at her sides blindly with the planks. Then elongated her legs to get her body out of harm’s way. She stretched herself past Octavio, striking at him as she did so. With her free hand, she snatched up one of the swords from the deceased guards. Then, she circled backwards. Surrounding Octavio with the length of her body, as a snake would their prey.

[b]“I believe I said stay still!”[/b] De’laire snapped.

She swatted at him with the broken plank, following up with a lunge from the sword.

[color=ff9900]”Do you realize that [i]we[/i] should be somewhere else, too ? So I got an alternative offer that is much more efficient because it will only hurt one individual instead of two: You could just stop living and start dying.”[/color]

They really needed to get that portcullis handled if such action had not taken place yet. Therefore, and albeit he hated employing this so early on, Týfurkh prepared the jade candle. He didn’t bother searching for a good spot, just thinking that De’laire’s very head would be good enough for some blinding effect, right ? The thing crashed onto her skull and shattered with so much force that the momentum and glass shards itself could probably be considered a weapon of some kind. Then Týfurkh launched himself forwards, hoping that while being attacked by illusions as well the wannabe-sightless wouldn’t be able to discern his approach as clearly as otherwise. He also didn’t perform the latter using the most straightforward way possible, but rushed towards her along a curved trajectory so her previous knowledge of his position would hopefully be of much less use.

In his hand he held one of the pieces of bookshelf that had not yet been launched at Octavio by De’laire. And last but not least he was a giant and he counted on sheer power working out in order to rip their common foe apart.

The top of the gatehouse exploded in a brilliant light. So bright that even shielding your eye could not keep out the light. The air seem to shimmer as it fought back the distortion. 

In this lone area of Shimmertown, the sky returned to its normal blue hue. The sun shifted back to its normal late day position, and shone its normal yellowish light.

The light from the Crystal Jade candle circled De’laire… then… then it attacked.

De’laire gasped. The shock of being cut off from the Insight hit her like a brick. The attack had hit her just in time. Her strike with the blade barely missing Octavio.

[b]“GIVE IT BACK!”[/b] She screamed. The shards of crystal jade, imbedded in her skin seemed a minor concern as did the sudden loss of Insight. 

[b]“I EARNED THIS!”[/b] She cried, tears streaming down her face. [b]“I worked so hard! Gave up everything I knew! Risked losing myself to insanity! AND NOW YOU TAKE IT AWAY!”[/b]

Týfurkh’s wooden plank smacked De’laire across the face, causing minor cracks across her right cheek. She swatted blindly at the giant with her own plank.

[b]“I WON’T LET IT HAPPEN! YOU DON’T GET TO TAKE THIS FROM ME!”[/b] She screamed.

Dropping the plank she just swung, she launched tendrils from her now free hand. Out over the side of the gatehouse, and then elongating downwards till they dug into the earth at the base of the wall. Deep in the earth she felt a pulse from the Seed of Insight’s roots. 

Deeper her tendrils dug, until finally wrapping around the roots. There she connected herself with the seed. 

She had been warned about the power held inside crystal jade, and while they had no way to counteract most of the blindness that occurred from being exposed to its light, Sightless Vetius had informed them that by directly connecting to the seed, they could regain some sense of Insight. They regained a sort of sonar. The ability for them to view the life force of others.

The Seed Pulsed again. Its waves spread throughout the earth and buildings located in the Distortion. They spread up the gatehouse walls and wash over those standing atop it. Two figures became ‘visible’ to her. A giant and a scrawny man.

[b][i]There![/i][/b] She thought.

De’laire angled her sword hand seeing an opening in-between the armor protecting the giant man. She swung her sword victory at hand!

Boom! Something powerful struck De’laire in the face and exploded in a burst of energy. The side of her face shattered from the impact as she was thrown to the floor. 

Who? How? Nobody else was here!

[color=00aeef]”Octavio! Now’s your chance!”[/color] Shouted a voice from above.

Above?! That wasn’t fair! The pulses from the seed couldn’t reach things in the air!

It had been the most dangerous waiting game that Octavio had been playing. He had taken the brunt of the plank’s weight, all in an effort to dodge the sweeping blade with full focus. He certainly hadn’t expected Týfurkh’s attacks and their domino effect to keep the woman from drawing blood. Not wanting to push his luck, he had instead been waiting, lurking, and later clamping his eyes shut from the shrapnel.

He drew his short sword mid-sprint, boots pounding against the ground least littered with detritus and melting illusions. The senses he had come to rely on were registering a kaleidoscope of uncomfortable sensations, all competing for his attention and receiving none of it. This was now a matter of instinct, of the muscle memory that a pair of calloused hands triggered as they wrapped tighter around the hilt of a blade. He made out Chres’ voice amidst the madness. 

[color=dde0c7]“You heard the man, we can’t exactly sit around here forever!”[/color] he shouted. He swung his sword upwards in a tight arc and let it crash at twice the speed into the woman. Whatever bizarre transformation this… [i]creature[/i] had now undergone had made even an attack like that nonlethal. 


[hr]

[color=a2d39c]”Pow! Right in the face!”[/color] Sil cried happily.

Chres smiled, glad that he made it in the nick of time. He had survived the throw by quickly Weaving a heat construct in the shape of a shute. Using the shute as a slide he had angled it back towards the tower and thankfully safety. 

After a quick breather, Chres ran his way back to the gatehouse and avoided further combat by weaving heat constructs in the form of steps leading all the way back to the top of the gatehouse. Upon seeing Týfurkh in danger, he quickly tossed a compressed ball of energy which exploded onto the already cracked Sightless’s face.

The attack seemed to have severely wounded the Sightless. The side of her face shattered, having already been cracked. An orange goop poured from the wound as black plant-like shoots shot from the wound and slowly weaved together in a sort of bind.

Chres jumped off his heat construct platform and landed next to Týfurkh.

[color=00aeef]”Hurry!”[/color] He said to Octavio while drawing his hatchet. [color=00aeef]“Open the portcullis! Týfurkh and I will handle this one.”[/color]

He took the hatchet and swung for the Sightless. Screaming with rage, the Sightless swung wildly with her sword and somehow managed to deflect the attack towards her face.

Chres followed up with a kick to the head. [color=00aeef]”Go!”[/color] He shouted again.

As pathetic as she was, he’d be a fool not to recognize her strength, or at least her perseverance. Or was it just plain madness? Whatever it had been that kept her from accepting defeat in battle, he had come to respect it in the detached way a rogue with no sense of honor could. 

He sprinted towards the portcullis and gave a sigh of relief as his connection to Lynx felt clear again. Amusingly enough, when it came to direct confrontations neither of them tended to talk much, an opposite approach in comparison to their typical stealth and banter. Even in this mild reprieve the pair was silent. There wasn’t much help a being without opposable thumbs could offer when it came to opening things, and both of them knew it. 

Two large winches on either side. Typical. 

[color=dde0c7]“However the saying went about broken things not being fixed,”[/color] muttered Octavio, summoning two guards to do the heavy lifting for him. 

 [color=#ffff66]“Next you are going to say, ‘if only you had thumbs, Lynx’, or at least something similar. It is why we would enter through castle windows and crenellations instead.”[/color]

Octavio rubbed a temple with his free hand, sword remaining in the other. [color=dde0c7]“Hmph.”[/color] His mind was getting split into various directions again. It made responding difficult, but the cat, too, knew this. [color=dde0c7]“Just… be quiet and help me guard the guards.”[/color] The irony was not lost on him.

[b]“NO!”[/b] The sightless screamed, launching desperate set of tendrils in Octavio’s direction. 

Chres took another swing with his hatchet, chopping the Sightless’ tendrils in two.

The Sightless screamed again. Sending another wild swing of the sword at Chres. He avoided the blow easily, and followed up with a final swing of his hatchet. Sending it into her open facial wound, and lodging it in her brain. 

[b]“Noo...”[/b] the sightless croaked again.

Chres raised his brow curiously, surprised by the resiliency of the creature. Putting his foot on its head as leverage, he prepared to yank out his hatchet for another blow, but then he saw the creature’s tendrils start to retract.

[b]“I can’t… die…”[/b]

Chres stepped back, as he noticed the Sightless’ blackened skin start to turn brown and shrivel as if withering.

[b]“Not now… not when I finally became... free...”[/b]

The black vine-like shoots that bound her wounds curled back allowing the orange goop, making up her blood, to ooze out.

[b]“Freedom… that’s all I wanted…”[/b]

Weakly, the Sightless reached out for Chres’ leg.

[b]“Freedom from... this curse… freedom from... being... Crazed...”[/b]

With a thud. De’laire’s arm fell to the ground. With a shake of his head, Chres retrieved his hatchet and wiped the orange ooze from his blade.

While the light from the Crystal Jade candle had begun to recede, off in Octavio’s direction he could hear the sounds of a new ray of light shining. A ray of hope. The sounds of the Portcullis rising.

Chres smiled as he approached the man, and patted him on the back. 

[color=00aeef]”It’s over... We actually did it...”[/color] Chres breathed a sigh of relief. 

Octavio’s shoulders dropped in a way that seemed to age him several years. It was over. 

[color=a2d39c]”We’re all heroes!”[/color] Sil exclaimed excitedly.

[color=00aeef]”We?”[/color] Chres said, his brow raised skeptically. [color=00aeef]”And what did you do?”[/color]

[color=a2d39c]”Emotional support!”[/color] She said happily.

Chres smiled and shook his head. Wearily, he took a seat against one of the large winches. 

[color=00aeef]”Emotional support.”[/color] He repeated with a chuckle. [color=00aeef]”I don’t know... What do you two think? Octavio? Lynx?”[/color]

The rogue could only let out a wry smile. The kind only close friends ever got to see. [color=dde0c7]“By the gods… she’s joking, but it really is a nice thing to have.”[/color] He looked at the wreckage that surrounded them for a brief moment. [color=dde0c7]“Especially during a mess like this.”[/color]

The bruises and scrapes all over his body thrummed in pain as the adrenaline began to fade. It was with a small smirk that he knew the numbness would return faster than he desired. This was only a short reprieve from war, he knew on a visceral level. 

Lynx could only turn away in disapproval.  [color=#ffff66]“If I criticized anyone for inaction, I would be a hypocrite. My capabilities as a familiar are limited. It is a factor we all are faced with.” [/color] He was almost defensive of Sil. Not that he would admit it. The battles were only getting more intense. Octavio was depending on him less now that they weren’t petty thieves that needed a distraction and just enough coin for a place to rest. 

[color=a2d39c]”See? Lynx gets it!”[/color] She said patting him on head. [color=a2d39c]”That's a good Lynx. Good Boy!”[/color]

Chres did his best to suppress his smile. [color=00aeef]”Sil! Don't patronize him. He's a friend. Not a pet.”[/color]

[color=a2d39c]”Friend. Pet.”[/color] Sil shrugged. [color=a2d39c]”Same, same.”[/color]

Chres rolled his eyes, unable to suppress his smile this time. Getting up from his seat, he looked out past the wall and towards freedom. The army had begun charging towards the gate. He knew it wouldn't be long now. 

Chres breathed out a sigh of relief. It finally was coming to an end.
[/hider]